Strong increase of T(c) of Sr₂RuO₄ under both tensile and compressive strain.

Hicks, Clifford W; Brodsky, Daniel O; Yelland, Edward A; Gibbs, Alexandra S; Bruin, Jan A N; Barber, Mark E; Edkins, Stephen D; Nishimura, Keigo et al. · Science · 2014

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

A sensitive probe of unconventional order is its response to a symmetry-breaking field. To probe the proposed p(x) ± ip(y) topological superconducting state of Sr2RuO4, we have constructed an apparatus capable of applying both compressive and tensile strains of up to 0.23%. Strains applied along ⟨100⟩ crystallographic directions yield a strong, strain-symmetric increase in the superconducting transition temperature T(c). ⟨110⟩ strains give a much weaker, mostly antisymmetric response. As well as advancing the understanding of the superconductivity of Sr2RuO4, our technique has potential applicability to a wide range of problems in solid-state physics.